Home Is Where You Are
by NotALoveSong88
Summary: People don't believe in ghosts. Why would they? Its just horror stories people tell children to scare them. Ghosts aren't real, so what does that make Austin? Just another freak? (Loosely based of Violet and Tate's relationship in American Horror Story. Some triggering chapters)
1. Chapter 1

**My Home Is With You**

**PLEASE READ THIS NOTE FIRST**

**Now, before I start, I need to give you guys a big warning. This story is going to be loosely based of the kind of romance between Tate Langdon and Violet Harmon from the show American Horror Story. However, this means this story is going to include serious things like self harm, death, suicide e.c.t. I will of course give a trigger warning before each chapter that includes something triggering. But I knew that I needed to give a big warning before anyone started reading this story in case you wont want to read something like this. **

**Trigger warning- Self harm. **

**Chapter One - Ghost Stories**

"Why though?" I shouted at him as he carried the box up the stairs.

"Because we need a fresh start sweetie. It's a nice house, I'm sure you'll love it here. You just need to settle in"

"Yeah right" I hiss as I run up the stairs to my new room. It was nice, although I would never admit that to my parents. Painted a dark blue, double bed in the middle, it was currently full of boxes which I would have to unpack eventually, but for now I might as well let my anger run its course. I marched in the bathroom connected to my room and slammed the door behind me. I knew what I wanted to do, I knew my blades were only an inch away in my make up bag by the sink. I knew the cuts on my arms were already asking for another friend, but I couldn't. Not right now. I'd give in to temptation later. It was stressful for me, the move, moving away from my school, which was a shit hole anyway, but even so it was the principle. The school were always on about stability in your final year, so moving across the country was possibly the worst thing they could have done to me. The idea of going to a new school, seeing all the different groups and meeting them all with their judging faces. The thought of it made me want to run away from this place.

"Ally, come on sweetie" shouts my mom who was stood outside my door. I didn't really understand why she was even giving this move a chance. The only reason we were here was because my dad cheated on her with some tramp on a stag do. I was surprised she ever gave him another chance, he didn't deserve one.

I opened the bathroom door to see her stood outside, she looked tired. Bags under her eyes with no make up on, dressed in some old tattered top she'd found at the back of her wardrobe and had insisted on wearing since it was her "favorite" even though she hadn't even remembered its existence in the last 10 years.

"I know this move is hard for you. Its hard for me too. But just think" she says, walking me over to the bed where I sit and she sits next to me, it creeks eerily, but I didn't mind, I was used to unusual sounds, it makes my mom cringe though. "Tomorrow, you'll start at a new school, meet new friends, meet new teachers and you'll do great. I know you will"

"I still don't understand why we moved here, why you gave him another chance and made me move away"

"You always said you hated it back at home."

"Still." I sigh, not really having anything to fight my case with.

"You'll fight against anything you can wont you" she laughs to herself. "That's one thing that's so amazing about you Ally" she smiles, wrapping one arm around me. "Trust me, you'll like this place in a few weeks."

I don't say anything to her, I just sit there, waiting for her to take the hint and leave, which she eventually does.

* * *

><p>Waking up the next morning was like waking up to find that everything you loved has disappeared, well, I'd felt like that for months, but today it felt ten times worse. I turned on my music before jumping in the shower. It was strange to look at my arms, covered in cuts and bruises, I always found it curious to see them, the new ones from the previous night after I had argued with my dad about moving and I stormed up stairs. Then, well, you know what happens. I found it strange how fast they would heal, yet the remnants were left there.<p>

I dressed in some knee length dress on the top of one of the boxes, it was kind of a dark blue with floral patters, a pair of old black and white flats and a long cream cardigan to cover my arms.

"You look nice" my mom commented as I slung my bag around my shoulders, prepared to leave.  
>"Thanks" I mummer, not sure if she heard me or not, I wasn't really that bothered.<p>

"Are you ready for your first day?"

"Please don't make out that this is a big deal or you care about it" I sigh, walking to the front door.

"I do Ally. I cant believe for a second you think I don't care" she replies which makes me laugh. I refuse to carry on the conversation so I walk out the door, making a statement of closing it loudly before walking away.

School is as horrible as you would think. By first period I had already figured out who was who, who to avoid, who I could possibly talk to if I was in any mood for company, which I knew would be rare, but you never know. I wasn't expecting to actually talk to anyone throughout the day which was why I constantly had my headphones in. I was just minding my own business, walking outside where people were sat eating, in my own world, cigarette in my hand, watching the smoke fly past me.

"Hey!" shouts a voice right next to my ear, making me jump. I roll my eyes when I turn to see a girl with bright blonde hair, short skirt, low cut top.

"What?"

"You cant smoke here. There's a ban on it and second hand smoke can kill other people"

"Sorry. I'm new, I didn't know"

"Well, now you do" she glares, making it sound like she was trying to teach me a lesson which pissed me off.

"Okay" I reply wide eyed at her, shocked at how rude people were. I drop my cigarette on the floor and put it out with my foot.

"You have got to be kidding me. You smoke, helping kill yourself, you risk other people lives and then you litter." she shouts, picking up the cigarette next to my foot and shoving it in my face. "Eat it" she shouts, trying to force it in my mouth.

"No, what the fuck" I shout back, shoving her hand back. A group of kids gather round us to see the drama as she shouts her head off at me, the chant and heckle back hoping to see a fight, so for once in my life, I decide to give people what they want. As she tries to shove the cigarette into my face, I use my other hand to slap her right across the face making her shout even louder. She drops the cigarette on the floor and punches me, it was hard and fast, I could feel the blood running down my forehead.

* * *

><p>"What the hell happened" my dad asks as I walk into the house. I know he didn't care, he was selfish, he only cared about himself, but I tell him anyway otherwise I wouldn't hear the end of it.<p>

"Some bitch at my school. It doesn't matter"

"Boy or girl?"

"Girl."

"Did you get a good hit in?"

"Yeah" I laugh, actually pleased that that was one of his main questions.

"That's my girl" he says, nudging my shoulder lightly. "Your mom and I were planning on a family dinner, you know, to celebrate moving in and everything"

"Um, well. I was planning on going out later. There were some people I met at school who were going to the beach. They asked me to come with them" I lied. To be honest, I just didn't want to sit through the pain of a family dinner. My mom and dad resisting the urge to fight while they asked me personal questions which was the last thing I wanted to take part in.

"Oh, okay great." he smiles, I had perfected the art of lying a couple of years ago, especially after I started wearing long sleeved jumpers all the time to cover my arms.

* * *

><p>"I'm going out" I shout as I walk over to the front door. The house was big and open, so I knew it would echo enough for one of them to hear me. There isn't a reply, but I had my phone in my pocket for when they would call me ad ask me what had happened and where I had gone and who I was with. I had changed into a pair of black jeans and a long sleeved grey shirt which a white lace over shirt on the top, and a pair of old tattered brown boots.<p>

It was already dark outside, the moon above the sky. Usually people would say something poetic about it, but honestly, it wasn't that impressive. It had risen a countless number of times, so I was unsure about what people found so fascinating about it. I walked down the streets, I didn't really know where I was going, I just needed to get out of the house and breath. Be alone without parents asking how school was, how I was feeling, and ending with me getting annoyed again about moving. I just put my headphones in and play my music loud, a cigarette handing out of my mouth without worrying that some bitch would shout at me or my parents would catch me.

I'm almost at the beach when I can hear something near me. Reluctantly I pull out one of my headphones and look around.

"Got any Kurt Cobain?" says a deep voice. I turn to see a guy sitting on the beach across the road, his back turned to me, I put my headphone back in, realising he couldn't possibly be talking to me. I walk across the street onto the beach, my boots slipping through the sand with ease. I could barely see where I was going, but I eventually saw some old lifeguards hut, built on platforms to keep the sea from getting at it. It still had an old light flickering inside. I climbed a couple of the steps to the hut and sat down, pulling out another cigarette.

"D'you not hear me before?" says a voice not far away. I look up from my phone, pulling my headphones out and looking around. "Do you have any Kurt Cobain?" a voice says behind me, I jump up from the step, turning to see a long blonde haired boy stood at the top of the steps. It takes me a second to compose myself before I say anything.

"Weren't you sat down the beach just two minutes ago?"

"Yeah" he laughs, walking down a couple of steps towards me.

"Then how the hell did you get up there?"

"So many questions yet you haven't answered mine yet" he says, a comforting smile on his face.

"Um, yeah. I have a couple of songs"

"Good. Then I don't have to teach you about good music then"

"Who are you?" I ask confused.

"I'm Austin."

"And why are you walking around the beach by yourself?"

"Probably the same reason you are. Getting away from everyone. Your new here right? Makes sense why you'd want some space, high school students are ass holes"

"That's true." I reply, sitting down on the steps, he sits down next to me a second later.

"You never said your name"

"Its Ally"

"Well, nice to meet you Ally. Finally another messed up kid to walk around the beach with."

**If you got this far then I hope you liked the chapter. Like I said, there will be a trigger warning before each chapter just in case. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and if people find it offensive or I get so many complaints I will of course delete the story immediately**

**Please review. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Home Is Where You Are**

**Trigger Warning - Self harm**

**Chapter Two - The World Is Full Of Bullshit**

"This one is when I had a fight with my mom" he says, showing me his left wrist which had a couple of cuts down to his elbow. "And this one is from when my brother ran away from home" he says, pointing to the most deepest cut on his arm, placed perfectly in the centre of his arm. He had a strange smile on his face as he showed me, almost like he was proud of himself. I roll down one of my sleeves so we could compare, mine had a lot more scars dotted around, but his were deeper.

"This one is from yesterday"

"What happened yesterday?"

"I started my new school. Got into a fight with some bitch because I was smoking"

"See this is why I don't go to school anymore. The world is full of predictable ass holes who have to get their own way or they give everyone in there way the biggest pile of shit they can throw."

"I don't get why people can't mind there own business. Like, why should she care if I smoke or not, she didn't have to be a complete bitch about it."

"Maybe you should get some pay back? They say revenge is sweet"

"I don't know. I'm not in the mood to have her hypocritical zombie Barbie dolls making my life hell for the next year"

"Well, if you change your mind, I'll gladly help you. I got some pay back from the kids in my school once, it was strange but thrilling at the same time"

"What did you do?"

"I don't know really. Its kind of a blur whenever I try and think about it. I don't think I did anything too bad though" he says. We sit there for what feels like forever, swapping stories of hard times we've both had, some worse then others. Some petty arguments which caused us to loose it, some serious issues which left more mental scars which couldn't be erased so easily. We look at each others scars, which I had never shown anyone before, but I know he wont judge, since he's been through this shit as well.

Its 10:30 before my phone starts to ring. I pull it out of my pocket and wait before answering, checking to see who it was. My moms number appearing on the screen. I can see out of the corner of my eye, Austin peering over, looking curiously at the phone in my hand. I sigh before answering the phone, knowing I was going to hear some bull shit about me missing family dinner.

"Ally, where are you? I'm worried sick!" she says frantically down the phone.

"I'm out with a friend"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I told dad, didn't he mention it to you?"

"No, he didn't" she sighs.

"Is this the part where you tell me I need to come home right now?"

"No. I'm just annoyed you missed our family dinner. I was looking forward to it"

"Sorry. I just didn't want to sit around a table awkwardly with you and dad all night"

"Ally!" she says shocked, even though she knows its true, she didn't expect me to actually say it. "Just make sure your back by eleven" which gave me about half an hour before I needed to be home. I tell her goodbye and hang up the phone even though I knew she probably had more to say. I knew that when I got home I would be questioned about who I was out with and where I went and what I did. I knew there would be questions and complaints about family dinner and how we'd have to do it tomorrow, which I would avoid once again like the plague.

"Who was that?"

"Just my mom. I don't know why she pretends to care. I know she doesn't and she's not very good at acting"

"I don't know, maybe she does care. Maybe you just don't realise it"

"No. I know she doesn't. If she cared about me then she wouldn't have made me move all the way here. She did that for herself"

"Well. If its any conciliation. I'm glad she decided to move you here"

"Why?"

"Because you're the only person I've talked to in months who actually makes sense, who understands all the bullshit that goes on in the world"

"You have no idea how much I'm dreading walking into that hell hole tomorrow" I sigh, messing with my feet, dragging the sand with them to build one big pile. Austin sits there for a second thinking.

"Then don't?" he asks. "Don't go to school. Sneak off, we can spend the day together"

"My parents would kill me if they found out" I reply, considering the idea since I didn't want to go. My mom was going out tomorrow for a couple of interviews, my dad had transferred his job and was staring tomorrow, I guess I could sneak back into the house and stay there for the day.

"They wont have to know. I wont tell"

"Okay" I reply, nodding my head. It couldn't go badly, I mean, my parents wouldn't be home and if they, for some reason, came back early, the house had so many doors leading outside I was sure me and Austin could escape without them knowing. "Come over to mine tomorrow"

"Okay great." he says with a crooked smile.

"I should get going"

"I'll walk you home"

"So why don't you go to school anymore? I'd need someone like you there to keep what's left of my sanity"

"I'm really not the best person to keep anyone sane. I lost it ages ago" he jokes as we walk through the streets, relying on the moonlight to see. "I dropped out a while ago. I hated being crowded around by fools who don't understand anything but how to be ass holes."

"I wish I could drop out. My parents would kill me and hate me even more then they do now, but at least then I could be free from it"

"Are you scared of your parents? Your always worried about what they think, what they'll do"

"No, I just hate how much control they have over me. I hate how if they say something, I have to do it. If I don't then we argue, and then, well, you know what happens when I argue with people"

"So if your not scared of your parents, then what are you scared of?"

"I'm not scared of anything"

"Really?" he asks suspiciously. "Everyone's got to be scared of something"

"Okay, then what are you scared of?"

"You know what I believe?" he asks, completely changing the subject. "I believe, that despite all the bullshit in the world, despite the manipulating self centred people, there are people out there who actually deserve a chance"

"Do you think your one of those people?"

"I don't know. But it cant all be shit, can it?"

"I hope not. I don't want to live in this world if its all disgusting. If it is I feel like I'll loose my mind. I feel like I'm loosing it already"

"Maybe we can keep each other sane for a while"

"Maybe" I smile as we reach my house. It was five minutes past eleven, five minutes late. I knew walking in, those five minutes would cause chaos. "I'll see you tomorrow then?" I ask, making sure he knew which house to go to, where to find me.

"If you want to see me tomorrow"

"Okay" I smile, walking over to my front door. I turn to see him stood at the bottom of my drive, smiling at me as I walk inside, closing the door behind me. Turning to face my mom, stood in her dressing gown, worried look on her face.

"What? I'm only five minutes late."

"No, its not that" she sighs, walking over to me and wrapping her arms around me tightly. "Did you have fun?"

"It was okay"

"I'm glad your making friends already. I didn't expect it to happen so quickly if I'm honest. Your dad told me about that fight you had with a girl at school"

"It was nothing"

"Where did you go then?"

"To the beach"

"With who" she asks, making me sigh, I knew I was going to be interrogated about this, but I didn't expect it to happen when I had just walked through the door.

"Just a friend"

"A boy… friend?" she asks, smiling to herself.

"Mom!" I shout seriously, unsure as why parents had to ask so many questions all the time.

"What?! I saw you stood outside with him."

"God" I sigh, messing with the sleeves of my shirt.

"Do you like him? What's his name?"

"Why do you ask so many questions" I complain, moving towards the steps.

"I don't know, there just seems to be something different about you"

"For gods sake mom. You see me with a guy once and your already planning a wedding" I shout, stomping up the stairs and into my room. I hated how she had to pry into my business. I hated that I walked with Austin so close to my house, I knew she would be looking for me, watching as to who I was with. I hated the fact that I couldn't have anything to myself in this house.

The things I hated ran through my head as I reached the bathroom, grabbing my make up bag. Pulling out the silver blade I had put in there this morning, I had heard my dad asking about what happened to his razors not so long ago, I never admitted to anything, why would I? They didn't care, they just wanted to annoy me, I thought as I pulled the sharp blade across my skin. Red flowing over my skin, dripping on the sink, pooling together before running down to the pipes.

"Stop!" shouts a male voice, making me jump, the blade in my hand dropping on the floor. I turn around, thinking that my dad would be standing there, but there's no one. I pick up the blade, clean the sink and clean up my arm. I was sure that I had to be turning insane, I was hearing things. There was no one there.

**Please review**


	3. Chapter 3

**Home Is Where You Are**

**Chapter Three - Permission **

I didn't feel at all guilty as I hid outside the house waiting for my parents to leave. I had purposely left with an empty bag so I wouldn't be carrying anything while I waited. I sat behind one of the tall bushes in our back garden which was connected to the front which came in handy since I could see when they left the house. My dad was the first to go, climbing in the car and sitting there for a few minutes looking on his phone. For a second I had thought he was going to call me, say he spotted me hiding and wanted me to climb in the car so he could drive me to school, but after a few minutes he starts the engine and drives off. Mom eventually leaves about ten minutes late, walking down the street since her first interview wasn't too far away. When I'm sure she's far away, I climb out from the bush and walk to the front door, unlocking it and walking up the stairs to my room. I grab my IPod and turn on some music. I was happy that I wasn't at school, I don't think I could have taken it there for a minute, let alone a whole day. I lay back on my bed and relax for a while, feeling a slight bit of freedom that I was the only one here.

Its about an hour later and I realise that Austin wasn't here yet. I wanted to text him, but I didn't have his number, I didn't even know if he had a phone, the way he looked at mine last night, it was like he had never seen one before.

I climb off my bed and walk downstairs, its eerily silent, its weird. I was always used to my parents rushing around, muttering about something that I never paid any attention too. I'm about to sit down again when I hear something banging. I look around, but its not in the room, its coming from the basement. I hadn't been down there yet, I wasn't planning on, but I walk towards it, opening the door to the steps. It was dark, of course it was, I don't think anyone had been down there for a few years. I take a few steps down, the old wooden steps creek as I walk.

"Hello?" I ask when I reach the bottom. I look for a light but there doesn't seem to be one. There's one loud bang close to me, making me jump. "Who's there?!" I shout.

"Ah!" shouts someone, grabbing my waist, making me scream. I struggle to get away, but the arms wont let go of me. As hard as I try and get away, the grip gets tighter, pulling me away.

"Let go of me!" I scream.

"Ally!" shouts a voice, I hear footsteps running down the stairs. "Let go of her. Now!" shouts the new voice. The hands stop pulling me backwards, but don't let go of me. My breath is already fast and unsteady, but I start to panic more when it wont let go. "GO. AWAY!" he shouts, and the arms let go. I fall forward, into a pair of new arms. I look up to see Austin looking down on me carefully. I wrap my arms around him and he does the same, holding me close to his chest.

"What the hell was that?" I cry.

"Nothing. It was nothing" his hand holds my head, stroking my hair, trying to calm me down.

* * *

><p>"I still don't understand what happened down there" I say as I sit on the floor. We were on the second floor in one of the spare rooms we had filled with a couple of couches and some other things we didn't know what to do with. Austin had just brought in a couple of drinks for the both of us.<p>

"It was nothing. Your basement door was open, it was probably just some kid who decided to sneak in and try to scare you" he replies, sitting next to me and putting his arm around me, he could tell I was still in shock so was trying to calm me down.

"Who would do that" I shiver, resting my head on his shoulder. He was comforting in a strange way.

"You know it's a sick world"

"Yeah, but I didn't realise people sneak into other peoples basements and scare the shit out of them"

"I thought you said you weren't scared of anything" he says mockingly, even though he knew now was not the time to make fun of me.

"I wasn't scared" I argue, even though I was, I didn't want to admit it to him. "It was just a shock"

"Okay" he replies even though I could tell in his voice that he didn't believe me one bit, which annoyed me a bit.

"You never said what you were scared of"

"Honestly. I don't know. There is so much bullshit in the world, its had to choose from all the things to be scared of"

"I've always found it strange how someone could be scared of a spider and be completely calm when someone is holding a gun to their head, or the head of someone they love. How can the tiny bug be worse?"

"People have different worries I guess. I don't think I would be scared of someone holding a gun to my head though" he says, I can feel him tense as he speaks.

"If they were holding it against your family?" I ask, curious as to what the answer would be.

"If it was my mom, I don't think I would care. She's always treated me like dirt. She always preferred my brother to me, even when I was ten and he was only 1, she still preferred the kid that would shit in a diaper which she would have to clean then me. What about your mom?"

"I don't know. Sometimes I think I'd have to save her. We were close at one point, acted like best friends"

"What happened?"

"She lost interest. I started going to high school, I didn't act like her baby anymore, she didn't like who I was anymore. I don't know, I could save her. My dad, he's a different story. I don't think he deserves to be saved. He cheated on my mom, broke her heart. He's the reason we moved, said he wanted the family to have a fresh start, but I know she cant forgive him, she's trying, but she cant do it. Neither can I."

"I don't think I'd save my dad either. He ran away when I was 14. He never told me why, my mom thinks he couldn't take it anymore, couldn't handle looking after me anymore. I haven't seen him in years"

"Parents speak a load of shit." I sigh, bringing my head up from his chest.

"They lie all the time"

"I mean, who lies about there being some big freaky ass bunny who delivers chocolate eggs or a big fat man sneaking into your house" I joke, which makes him laugh. I smile, looking over to him. When he stops laugh, the lopsided smile is still on his face as he looks down at me.

"Maybe not everyone in the world is full of bullshit"

"I don't know. You haven't gotten to know me fully yet"

"No. But I want to" he whispers, tucking a piece of hair back behind my ear, his head bending down to meet mine, cautiously at first. My breath was unsteady as his finger slowly traces my jaw line before pressing his lips to mine delicately. I close my eyes as I kiss him back. His lips pull back from mine, but his forehead stays rested against mine, his eyes staring into mine, a stupid grin on his face.

"Ally!" shouts a voice. I pull my head back from Austin's and look at the door where my mom is stood, arms folded, glaring with anger in her eyes. "Why the hell are you not at school?!" she shouts.

"I… I um" I stutter, unsure as what I should say to her.

"It was my fault" Austin says, trying to help me. "I convinced Ally to sneak the day off school"

"Well, that's very nice of you to admit. But who the hell are you?"

"I'm Austin Moon mam"

"Well, Austin Moon. I think you need to leave"

"Yes, of course" he says, standing up and walking towards the door.

"I don't want to see you here again" my mom says sternly to him. Austin stops in his tracks, unsure as to what he should say to my moms harsh comment. "Your clearly a bad influence to my daughter"

"You know when we were talking about fears?" Austin asks, turning to me. I nod my head, curious as to what was going on. "I think I just realised mine. Fear of rejection" he says seriously before running out of the room. Leaving me alone with a furious mother.

**Please review, it really helps for me to know what you guys think.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Home Is Where You Are**

**Chapter Four - Defiance **

"I don't know why you had to be so rude to him though?!" I shout at her. It was the next day and she wouldn't let it go. She had gone on about Austin all night, telling my dad about him, making up things she didn't even know. My dad obviously teamed up with her because they both wanted to ruin me. "Your on about how you wanted a fresh start, then when I actually make a friend, which was new for me, you send him away"

"Ally, if I hadn't have walked in when I did, who knows what he would have done. Ally, your only 16. I don't want you growing up so fast, I don't want you to be hurt by some boy you've only known for five minutes"

"He wouldn't have done anything to me. I wouldn't have let him" I reply, shocked that she didn't trust me to know what I was doing. I had been kissed before, once by a guy at some lame school disco when I was ten. It was horrible, messy, we didn't know what we were doing, but yesterday was different. "And anyway, I'm not your baby anymore. I'm a teenager who is old enough to know she is capable of standing up for herself and keeping herself safe"

"Ally" she sighs, walking over to the bed where I was sat. She sits down next to me and wraps her arms around me. "I know your not a baby anymore. And I do trust you, of course I do."

"Then trust me to make my own friends."

"Okay. He's not banned from the house. But if he ever, ever hurts you. Then he's dead"

"Thank you" I smile, grateful towards her for the first time in years. She kisses my forehead before walking out of the room. She was tired, you could tell, her movements were becoming slower, the bags under her eyes becoming darker, I felt sorry for her. She wasn't herself, and I knew it was dads fault, she just couldn't see that yet.

I smile, grabbing my phone, thinking that I would text Austin and tell him he shouldn't feel rejected anymore, that I was all okay, but then I remember that I still didn't have his number. "Damn it Austin" I laugh to myself. "I need you" I whispered to myself, remembering his offer from a couple of days ago.

"Did I hear my name?" says a voice, I look over to the door where Austin is stood, leaning against the doorframe. He was in some strange black and green sweatshirt, it looked old.

"How did you get in?" I asked, shocked that he was here.

"You know. I was in the neighbourhood" he says vaguely, walking closer towards me.

"Why do you dress like your from the 90s or something?" I laugh, standing up from my bed and closer to him.

"What's wrong with the 90s? It was better back then"

"How would you know"

"Fine. I've heard it was better" he laughs. "Stop interrogating me" he smirks, taking my hands which were up by my waist. His fingers tracing my palms. "Why did you need me?"

"Remember you offered to help me get payback to that girl at school. Is that still on offer?"

"Of course" he smiles excitedly. "You just get her to come to your house, in the basement. I'll sort out the rest"

"How exactly am I supposed to get her to come here?"

"Drugs"

"What?! Austin my parents would kill me"

"You don't actually have to have drugs" he laughs, making me feel stupid. "Just lie, tell her you have some. She'll want it, trust me. Tell her its back at your house and that she should come over after school. I'll be there, ready for when she arrives"

* * *

><p>"You'd better not be lying to me" said the blonde bitch who's name I now knew, she was called Cassy. At the mention of drugs she immediately pounced, agreeing to come back to my house, desperate for a fix she thought I could give her.<p>

"I'm not. don't worry" I lied, leading her down to the basement. I was lucky that my dad was still at work and my mom was out so they wouldn't know any of this was happening, they would never have to know. "Some dealer from Spain got his stash taken away, shipped over here first thing thinking it could all be destroyed, but people stole it before that happened. Its some of the best shit you'll get your hands on" I lied again, stopping when I reached the bottom of the basement.

"Where is it then?!" she asks, frustrated.

"Just round the corner" I say, pointing her in the right direction. She hesitantly walks round the corner, I grab the switch to the light and turn it on, making a spotlight in the middle of the room shine down on an old rocking chair where Austin was sat, a smug smile on his face. I had no idea what he was going to do, but I was curious to see.

"What the fuck is going on" Cassy sighs.

"Hi Cassy." Austin smirks, a dark look in his eyes, one I had never seen before. It was scary, almost evil. "Are you scared?" he asks before the light switches off, making both me and Cassy jump.

The light flashes quickly, spastically flickering, covering us in darkness before a second of light is given out. Cassy screams loudly. I try to focus my eyes and see something terrifying. Some sort of creature, not human. Blood pouring from its mouth, razor sharp teeth on show, its face mangled and green, deformed. It screeches, so painful that I have to cover my ears. The light still flickers, one moment showing Austin, sat in the chair rocking back and forth, laughing evilly, the next it's the monster. The thing, its deformed hand, only three fingers, its nails sharp and yellow, it grabs Cass. Pulling her to the floor. She screams, trying to wrestle the thing.

"AUSTIN!" I cry, scared as to what was happening. "STOP IT! AUSTIN STOP" I cry again, covering my ears, trying to block out the screams of Cass and the thing, blocking out Austin's manic laugh. But it doesn't stop. The creature climbs on top of her, scratching the side of her face. I step forward, trying to hit it, to get it off her, but its mangled hand grabs me, using its nails to dig into my arm. I scream, giving Cass a chance to get up and run. As soon as she's out of the room, the light turns on fully and I'm stood up by the wall where I was before. I check my arm, but there is nothing there, no new scars or cuts, only the ones I inflicted on myself. I hear Austin laugh, not the manic laugh before, a real laugh. I look up at him, horrified. He spots me and stops laughing, but the smile is still on his face. He climbs out of the chair and I step backwards, I start to run towards the steps, wanting to get out of the basement, away from Austin and whatever that thing was, but his arm grabs me before I can.

"Ally. Its okay. Its okay" he says, turning me around and holding my arms. A smile still pressed on his lips.

"What the fuck was that?! What the hell did you do?!" I shout in his face, wrestling to get his grip off me.

"We did it, we scared her, she wont be a bitch any more"

"No. We didn't scare her. You and that thing tried to kill her"

"No. No, that's not it" he says, his face changing, seeing how upset I was, he looks at me with concern.

"Let go of me!" I shout, and he does. His arms drop by his side. "Get out!" I shout, shoving him backwards, but he doesn't loose his footing. "I don't want to see you again!" I scream before running up the stairs, away from him, away from that basement.

"I THOUGHT YOU WEREN'T AFRAID OF ANYTHING!"

**Hi guys. I'm really grateful for the reviews I've had so far on this story, but I really do need you guys feedback on it to make sure that everything's going okay, to make sure your all enjoying it. **

**Its happened with other stories where I didn't know if people were enjoying it so I decided to stop writing because I didn't think anyone was reading. **

**I really hope this doesn't come out as self centred but I really need your help to know what you guys think, so I'm going to do what I did with another story. Can we try and get to say, at least 12 reviews and I will update as soon as possible. Please review. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Home Is Where You Are**

**Trigger warning - mentions of self harm**

**Chapter 5 - Mercy**

I am sick of this. Sick of this life. Sick of this family. Sick of every little thing that I've found that is remotely good is always taken away from me. I'm tired of putting up with it all the time but whenever I try and do something about it, it makes it worse. I used to assume that it was my fault, that I was the one causing so much pain, so I decided to inflict that pain on myself, using my dads razors to cut into myself, causing blood to trickle down my arms in strangely beautiful patterns which I became addicted to seeing. I carried on doing it for most of my life. I soon realised that it wasn't my fault, I wasn't the one causing the pain, well, not most of the time, but I still inflict that pain of myself, to feel some sort of relief. I was just another victim of the world, doomed to walk alone, but then I found Austin, and I thought finally, finally I've found someone who understands, someone who understands the pain, maybe he understood it more then I did. But then, that thing, that monster that attacked Cassy. I don't remember much, it's all a blur, I actually feel sorry for her, if I feel like this, I cant imagine how scared she is.

I just keep seeing him, at times when I don't want to see him, times where I don't want reminding of the basement and the horrible things lurking there. I don't want to think about it, but I cant forget the way he sat there, laughing like some maniac while he rocks back and forth on the chair. And then the monster, its teeth, I keep imagining its hand grabbing me.

"Ally" says a distant voice, a hand waving in front of my face. Its only when I start to focus again I realise that it was my mom, and she was sat right next to me, waiting for me to reply to her.

"Hm" I mummer.

"You looked miles away" she laugh as she wanders round the kitchen, preparing some ready meal for dinner since non of us were prepared to cook this late on a Saturday night.

"Maybe I'm better off miles away" I sigh, wishing that I could go upstairs and be in my room alone for the night, but my mom insisted on us all staying downstairs.

"You know what?" she sighs, stopping in her tracks from getting the food out of the fridge, I thought for a second she was going to complain at me. "How about I just order in some pizzas? I don't feel like cooking anything" she smiles, grabbing some take away menus from the draw and letting me pick what we ordered.

The doorbell goes off about 10 minutes after we ordered, making my dad jump out of his seat since he had been moaning earlier about how hungry he was, leaving me with my mom.

"Ally, can I ask you something?" she asks apprehensively, moving over to sit next to me. "What's going on between you and Austin?"

"Mom!" I shout, rolling my eyes at how nosey she was sometimes.

"I don't mean in a relationship way, that's a conversation for another day" she jokes, which actually does make me smile. She's been making more jokes the past few days, its been nice, its nice to see her happier, I missed that about her when my dad first cheated, its like she was drained off everything. "I mean, you haven't seen him since last week. You fought so hard to convince me un-ban him from the house, and when I caught you with him before, I thought you really liked him. What happened?"

"I don't know. Something happened, something weird" I wanted to tell her what I saw, I wanted to tell her what happened in the basement, but she would never believe me. She would get dad to ring a psychiatrist to come and help me and "talk through my problems".

"What do you mean?" how do I explain to her that I saw him change into an actual monster before my own eyes without sounding like I needed to be in an asylum.

"He… he just did something weird, I freaked out, I guess he must be angry at me, but I don't really know how take what he did. If that makes sense"

"I see the way you two were together. I know you haven't known him for long, but in that short time, I've seen a change in you. He's done something, I don't know what, but when I see you two together, you look different, happier. And I see the way he looks at you too. Like there's no one else there"

"Mom, where are you going with this"

"I'm just saying, something like that shouldn't be thrown away in a few seconds. I don't know what he did that was so strange, but if there's a chance you can work something out then I think you should."

"Why? You were the one that didn't want him here" I ask, not snidely, genuinely confused since my mom had never talked to me like this before, but then again, I had never given her the reason to before.

"I know. But the way he looked at you" she sighed. She had always been such a hopeless romantic. I remember her and my dad used to dance around the kitchen together, and the house full of flowers which my dad surprised her with. "Like you were the light in the darkness or something else cheesy like that, I haven't seen that look in years. The last time I saw it was from your father. Love like that doesn't just disappear"

For the first time ever I'd seen a new side to my mom. Not the overprotective one who treated me like I was a child, not the mom who had lost interest in me when I got older. One who actually listened to me, cared about what I was thinking, how I was feeling for a change. I appreciated this new side of her.

"Just think about it, okay?" she smiles, rubbing my arm with her hand.

"I will" I smile back, happy that we had talked.

"Ally." shouts my dad from the front door where he had been for a little while. "There's someone here for you" he says as he walks into the room, two pizza box's in hand, Austin following in afterwards.

"Hey" Austin smiles nervously.

"Hi"

"Ally. How about you take one of these pizzas and you two go upstairs and talk?" my mom suggests, much to my dads opinion. I do as she suggests and take one of the pizzas before leading Austin upstairs. Neither of us say anything as we walk into my room, I lay the pizza down in the middle of the bed before climbing on, Austin sitting on the end at the opposite side to me.

"Hey." I smile, opening the box.

"Hi" he says nervously, not looking me in the eye, rubbing the sleeves of his faded yellow over-shirt. Neither of us really knew what to say, were we supposed to make up? Decide not too see each other again?

"Ally, I really want to explain. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you, I just…" is as far as he gets before I interrupt him.

"Why did you drop out of school again?" I ask, wanting to change the subject. I knew what I had to do. I didn't need to forgive him, I didn't want to know what I saw. I just wanted to forget, to start again. He saved me before, when something was grabbing my waist, he was the one to come and help me.

"Sick of teachers telling me I was getting bad grades, sick of walking down the halls and despising everyone I was around"

"Sounds like me then" I laugh. "You got a lighter?" I ask, pulling out my cigarettes. I knew my mom wouldn't catch me if I had one, I could cover up the smell of smoke easily. He smiles as he leans forward and lights the cigarette which was hanging out of my mouth.

**Hi guys, sorry for no update yesterday, its just that I was at a concert till really late. And sorry that the chapter is short, I didn't get much sleep last night because of the concert so I'm really tired. I hope you enjoyed the chapter anyway, don't worry, things will pick up in the next chapter I promise.**

**Can we try and get to 18 reviews and then I'll update asap.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Home Is Where You Are**

**Trigger Warning - Self harm**

**Chapter 6 - Insanity **

My dads opinion used to mean a lot to me. If I was ever in trouble at school, needed help with something, advice about friends, I'd go to him. Unlike my mom, I felt like he didn't loose interest in me when I got older. But the more time I think about it now, I realise that he didn't help me once. He convinced me to abandon the things I love, warned me to stay away from people who I considered friends. So when he told me what he thought about Austin, that he was a bad influence, that he was strange, that he didn't think he was all there, that there was a problem with him, I ignored him.

It was a week after me and Austin had set things right, I had seen him a couple of times, always at my house. We usually stayed up in the attic which we hadn't redecorated yet, but it wasn't too bad, we'd sit on old cushions and play card games, he taught me some old ones which I had never heard of before, or we were in my room, listening to music, talking about bullshit that happened during the day. My dad would tell me afterwards how he didn't agree with it, that he didn't like me being around him.

"I like her" I heard a voice say as I walked down the stairs. I peered round the door of the kitchen to see Austin stood with my dad. "I think about her all the time"

"That may be so Austin, but I don't agree with it" my dad says, I resist the temptation to walk in and tell my dad to stop it, that he couldn't stop me seeing Austin, it was my choice, not his.

"Why don't you like me Mr Dawson"

"Its not that I don't like you Austin" he lied. "Its that I'm very protective over Ally. I know she may not need that, since she's always been so strong and independent, but that's my job. And there's something about you two being together that worries me"

"I wouldn't do anything to hurt her"

"That may be so" my dad says, clearly getting annoyed since he didn't like to explain himself a lot of the time, he thought his words were God and what he said was what had to happen. "But I don't want you seeing her" he says, practically shouting because he was getting so frustrated that he was being questioned.

"What do you think I'm going to do?" Austin replies, sounding almost as frustrated as my dad. "Oh" Austin laughs with realisation of something. "You think I'm going to have sex with her, take her virginity. That's it" he laughs, I freeze where I am, wondering what either of them would say next. "Trust me Mr Dawson, I've thought about it."

"That's enough Austin"

"Don't you wanna know what I'd do to her? I'd lay her down on the bed and caress her soft skin, make her purr like a little kitten. She's a virgin, they get we so easily" he says harshly, leaning over the kitchen island to look my dad directly in the eye while he said it.

"Austin. You need to leave my house. Right now"

"Right" Austin laughs, walking towards the door where I was stood. I try my hardest to run round the corner before he sees me, but as he walks past, I see him look into the room, look at me. His face drops for a second, realising that I would have heard exactly what he said. He stands in the door way for a second, trying desperately to think of something to say.

"I said now Austin!" my dad shouts, walking over to him. Austin doesn't say anything, he just looks sad as he walks away, my dad turns to me, looking smug. "What did I tell you Ally"

"Don't you dare" I glare, feeling utter resentment to him in that one moment. "I'm not in the mood to listen to you go I told you so"

"I did though. I told you he was a bad influence"

"Don't act like you didn't provoke him!" I shout. "If you hadn't have been so horrible he wouldn't have said any of that"

"This is in no way my fault Ally"

"Why do you always have to do this? Ruin anything that makes me happy!" I shout, running past him and up the stairs. I hear him shout to me, wanting me to come back so I cant talk to him but I didn't want to discuss any of it right now.

I rush into my room and slam the door behind me before walking to the bathroom. Despite what he said, I wanted Austin here with me, I actually wanted to know more about his scars, what made him do it to himself, we sometimes did it for the same reasons, but he wasn't here, and I didn't have anyone to talk to. So I pulled out my blade, pulled up my sleeve and wiped it across some clear skin on my forearm. Blood instantly appearing through the opening, gently trickling down my arm, it doesn't seem painful. I wipe the blood off, leaving my arm clean, yet another mark, another story to tell Austin if I saw him again.

I realised that there were two sides to Austin, like spilt personalities, and I was never sure which one I was going to meet. There was the side that was sweet, the one that told me that I was the only one that understood him, the one who I could talk to about anything and he actually gave a damn. The one who saved me and held me close to calm me down, the one who kissed me and was so upset when I almost sent him away. But then there was the side that was angry, that was unpredictable. The side which summoned some creature which almost killed Cassy. The side who stormed out of the house and the side which just said those things to my dad to infuriate him. One moment he could be sweet and then the next his personality would shift, everything about him becoming darker.

When I walk out of my bathroom I know my dad will have left, he needed to pick my mom up from the store since she couldn't bring the shopping back on the bus. I sigh as I sit down on my bed, still pissed off about everything that had happened. Then I spot something out of the corner of my eye. On my wall by the door I had a chalk board which my parents had bought me when I was younger to teach me the alphabet with, I still had it because occasionally I liked to draw strange things on. It had been blank over the past few days, but when I looked at it now, it had writing on it.

"_I'm sorry. Meet me in the basement at midnight? Please"_

Was it from Austin? How could it be? He didn't go into my room so how could he possibly have written it, but it couldn't have been my mom or my dad, so how the hell did it get there?

* * *

><p>When it reached midnight, my parents were both in bed. I had heard some strange sounds coming from there room earlier so I could guess what they were doing. Its depressing to hear the sounds of your parents having sex in a few doors down from you, especially after everything they'd been through.<p>

But still, despite feeling very grossed out, I crept down to the basement to see if it was Austin I would be meeting. I tried my best not to wake my parents, and somehow managed to achieve that despite the creaky floors.

"Austin?" I ask as I walk down the basement stairs. "Austin? You asked me to meet you hear at midnight" I ask when I reach the bottom. I stand there for a few seconds in silence before something launches at me through the dark. A hand covers my mouth, making my screams muffled. The hand is rubbery and it feels horrible against my skin. The thing shoves me forward, pushing me against the wall and turning me around so I can face it. Its face covered in the same material that the hand is, the only human thing you can see is the eyes peaking out of two tiny holes.

"Hey" laughs the figure, making me stop screaming since the voice sounded so familiar. The hand pulls away from my out and goes to the back of its head, pulling what I presumed to be a zip. Pulling down the hood to see a familiar mess of blonde hair which he pushes back with his rubbery hand.

"What the hell" I say in a shouted whisper, pushing him back in the chest.

"I scared you" he chuckles to himself.

"No you didn't" I say, but even I couldn't convince myself. From experience I had only associated the basement with everything evil, and now with Austin dressing up as some insane demonic sex crazed psychopath, he wasn't helping me feel better.

"Sure" he smirks, leaning down and gently kissing me, making me feel safer. It was the first time we had kissed since the day I sneaked off school, but it felt the same. The same energy and excitement mixed with comfort. It was perfect, despite the rubber suit.

"Where did you get that thing?" I laugh as his forehead rests against mine, a goofy lopsided smile on his face.

"Finders keepers" he smirks, kissing my cheek before pulling away, his hands messing with mine, touching each finger, tracing my palms.

"Your so strange" I laugh, resting my head on the wooden staircase. "How long did it take you to put that thing on?"

"I will admit… it took way too long"

"Is it supposed to be sexy or something?"

"I don't know. I think it's a mix of sexy and scary"

"Rubber suit, for people with creepy fetishes" I laugh, making him laugh too.

"You're the only person I've ever know to have that kind of humour" he smiles. "Anyway, I bet I can really scare you"

"And how do you plan on doing that?"

"Hang on. Let me take this damn thing off" he smirks, going round the corner.

"I think that would be more terrifying then anything you could tell me" I joke. When he finally comes back round the corner his face is quite red, clearly it must be just as hard to take off as it was to put on.

"Go on then. How are you planning on scaring me?"

"Did anyone ever tell you what happened in this house?" he asks as we sit down on the steps to the basement. I shake my head in reply, no one had ever really told me the history of the house because to be honest, I was never really that interested.

"The house was built 100 years ago by a rich doctor. He built it for his wife who always despised him, thought he was no good at his job"

"Well, if he was rich then she was clearly wrong"

"You'd think so, but he became addicted to drugs. Started to use the basement, this basement as his lab where he'd try and mutate animals, dismember them, fix their body parts to each other. His wife ran away from him, taking their 4 month old child with them. They disappeared for months, not a word to the doctor. He turned insane. Started kidnapping other peoples children, taking apart their bodies, trying to sow the parts together to try and replicate his son. A few months later, the wife returned, she apologized to her husband, but she didn't have the baby with her. He asked her where he was. She told him that their son had been kidnapped a few days ago. Its then that the doctor realised that he had kidnapped his own son, and his heart to transplant into his monstrous creation. He was so distraught that he killed himself, but not before killing his wife for running away. They say the creature is still down here, and the ghosts still haunt the house, looking for their baby"

"Wow" I sit there for a second. "That is… absolute bull shit" I laugh. "As if that actually happened. As if someone would actually do that"

"Its true" he laughs, trying to convince me, but I didn't believe him for one second.

We stayed in the basement talking until about 4am. He told me some more ghost stories about the house, I never believed a word he said, it all sounded like unbelievable lies. I kissed him goodbye at 4:30am, he managed to sneak out of the house without making any noise which shocked me. I went back up to bed, happy that I had seen him.

* * *

><p>I woke up that morning to the sound of my mom throwing up.<p>

**Thanks for reading. Please review.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Home Is Where You Are **

**Chapter 7 - Faith**

"Ally, I need you to come down here please" my dad shouts. It was Monday morning and I knew I had no choice, I had to go to school. I grab my black bowler hat and place it on my head, my red dress flowing behind me as I slammed the door and walked down the stairs, seeing my dad stood at the bottom of the stairs waiting for me.

"I know. I have to go. I can't be late" I say in a mocking voice when I reach the bottom of the stairs.

"Don't be like this Ally. I know you don't like it at school but you have to go."  
>"Why though? It doesn't make me feel good. It doesn't make me happy."<p>

"No, but you need your education. You were doing so well in school last year, I know you can do just as well this year if you give it a try. Trust me Ally, when you've graduated and you've become whatever you want to be, then you'll thank me"

"We'll see about that" I sigh as I walk out of the front door, not waiting for anything else he has to say but he follows after me.

"I'll be driving you to school today"

"What?!" I reply shocked, turning around to face him to see if he was actually serious. He was.

"I want to make sure you actually get there today. Its only for one day, I promise." he says as he unlock the car and climbs in the drivers seat. Despite the strong temptation to just run as fast as I can, as far away as I can, I climb into the passenger seat.

Its horrible. The way he sits there like nothing is wrong. The way he pretends that he hasn't caused any pain. How he causes me more pain by singing along with the radio as we drive. When you hear your dad sing All About That Bass just once, its something that will scar you for life. What is supposed to be a five minute journey seemed to turn into a twenty, then a thirty. When he finally pulled up outside of school I climb out immediately.

"Ally" he stops me. I lean over and look into the car, anxious to get away as fast as possible. "Me and your mom were thinking we could all go out for dinner tonight. Maybe catch a movie or something. What do you think?"

"You guys should go" I reply, I had plans with Austin tonight so it would be better if they were out of the house, away from asking questions.

"We thought you'd want to come as well. Since its Halloween and we didn't think you'd want to be stuck at home"

"No. I um, I actually have plans tonight already" I decided to tell him the truth. Maybe he would accept it better that way, make it easier for me to leave and get today done with so I could get through school and go back home.

"Oh. Okay. Well, we'll talk about it some more when we get home" he shouts as I close the car door and walk away.

I walk with purpose. I walk as if no one is around me. I walk with despise that there actually are people around me but I know it doesn't matter. This doesn't matter. I know that eventually this hell hole will burn to the ground like everything else. I might not be the one to do it, but I know it will happen eventually.

"Pst" hisses a voice. I turn to see a face peaking from behind a corner. Curiosity gets the best of me and I walk over. Its Cassy. She's pale. it's the first time I've seen her since the attack in my basement and she looks worse then I thought she would.

"What?" I ask. I found it strange that she wanted to talk to me. Why would she want to after everything that happened.

"Come with me" she says in a hushed voice and walks away. I wonder if I should go with her. If this was some plan to get back at me. If her Barbie doll friends and some jocks would be around the corner ready to beat the crap out of me for what happened to their queen bee. But I can never resist the temptation. If it was a fight around the corner, I was willing to take it on, I would never back down to them. But if it wasn't a fight, then I was curious to see what she wanted.

She takes me around a few corners, out of the school, down the field where the jocks are throwing a football around, up to some benches away from everyone. It smelled like weed and coke so it made sense that no one was really around. I sit on the top of one of the tables, she sits net to me.

"What is it? Why have you brought me here?" I ask.

"What was that thing?"

"It was Austin. He was just trying to mess with you"

"No. That thing. That wasn't human. It was a monster"

"What's with the hat" I ask since it didn't seem like her. She was dressed differently all together really. She was wearing a long black dress which covered her whole body and a black floppy hat which covered her face, but I could still see the plasters on her face, covering what I assumed to be scars from the attack. It makes me wonder how her scars were showing yet the ones I received from the attack were no where to be seen.

"It serves a purpose" she sighs, pushing back her hat to show a piece of grey hair. "My hair is literally turning white from fear. I read about it, it can actually happen."

"What did your parents say, about your scars"

"I told them some dude in a back ally was after my handbag. Couldn't exactly tell the I went to your house to score drugs could I"

"How bad are they?"

"They're deep. Deeper then the ones on your arm"

"What?" I ask, shocked that she would mention my arms, I didn't even know she knew.

"I'm not stupid. I know you do it" she sighs. "Do you believe in hell?"

"No."

"I do. I've looked the devil in the eyes." she says, pulling a packet of cigarettes out of her bag and lighting it before offering me one. I gratefully take one and light it.

"I thought you didn't smoke" I said, thinking back to the time she was so shocked with smoking that she tried to make me eat my own cigarette.

"I took it up. I needed some sort of relief. I cant sleep, I cant eat. I just keep thinking about that thing"

The conversation goes on for a while. We miss out first few lessons and waste a few more cigarettes sitting there, talking about hell. Maybe Cassy isn't as bad as I thought, maybe.

* * *

><p>"Ally." my mom says as she stands in the door way to my room. "Can we talk?"<p>

"About what" I ask, sitting up on my bed as she walks in and sits down on the end of the bed.

"Your dad tells me that you have plans for tonight and that's why your not joining us"

"Yeah"

"Are these plans with Austin?"

"Yeah" I say after a few seconds, deciding if I should be honest with her or not.

"Is he coming here or…"

"He's meeting me here. I don't know what we're going to do"

"Well. I just wanted to say that I'm fine with you wanting to meet him. It was just a suggestion you going out with me and your father but I think you'll have more fun with Austin. Just be careful. Its Halloween, you know lots of crazy things happen"

"Are you still going out with dad?"

"Why, do you two want the house to yourself?" she asks, thinking there was some deeper meaning to me meeting Austin. I give her a dirty look for asking the question. "Yes, me and your dad are still going out"

"Okay"

"You two have fun." she says, getting off the bed and walking towards the door. "But seriously Ally. If you do have "special" plans tonight with Austin. Make sure you use protection, please"

"Mom"

"I know, I know" she laughs before walking out of the room and leaving me alone.

My parents go out around 7, which meant I had an hour before Austin would get here. I couldn't believe what my mom had said to me earlier. Sometimes it was reassuring to have her so protective, but sometimes it was too awkward. But it did get me thinking, maybe tonight was the night. Maybe I could sleep with Austin. I liked him, a lot. I hadn't intended to, my plan for life was to hate everyone in my path, but Austin and me connected. It was something I had never experienced before. Maybe Austin was the guy I could loose my virginity with.

I'm sat there thinking about it when I hear something hitting my window. I climb off my bed and walk to the window, peering out of the curtain I see Austin stood on the grass before, a smile on his face, dressed in a black and green striped top which looked quite old. I open the window.

"It the coast clear?" he laughs.

"Yeah. I'll get the door" I smile, closing the window before going to the door.

"Hey" he smiles as he's stood on the porch. I smile back at him before wrapping my arms around him. His hand hold my head, keeping me close to him.

"So, what the plan for tonight?" I ask as he walks inside.

"Um. Watch a film? Play some more cards?"

"We do that all the time. Can't we do something new? Go out somewhere." he looks doubtful for a second. "Its Halloween. We're just going to have trick or treaters coming up to the door and disturbing us all night"

"Okay" he says, "We'll go out"

"Great"

"Oh. Before I forget" he says, standing up straight and facing me. He reaches from behind him and pulls out a rose, but not any normal rose, it wasn't red or white, it was pure black. "I painted it black. I know how you don't like normal things"

"Its beautiful" I smile, taking it out of his hands and looking at it closer. "You're the first boy to ever give me a flower" which makes him smile to himself, I think he was proud that he was the first. "Thank you"

"So, are you ready for our date?" he asks.

"Sure. Lets go" I say, grabbing my keys before we both walk out. I lock the door before his hand grabs mine, swinging it as we walk.

* * *

><p>"They say the dead can walk freely on Halloween" Austin says as we walk up to the beach. He had decided to take me to the place where we first met. It was cheesy, but I thought it was a sweet idea. It was away from everyone else, away from the people in "scary" costumes, somewhere quiet where we could be together.<p>

"What is it with you and ghost stories?"

"I don't know. I guess I've always found them interesting. Something about finding out what happens to you after you die, I've always wanted to know"

"I think sometimes you just want to scare me" I laugh as we walk up to the abandoned life guards cabin.

"Does it work?"

"No. I'm not scared"

We sit on the steps together, his hand still holding mine. We seem to talk for ages. Pointless things, pointless and petty stories but its fun. More fun then sitting with my parents wishing I could kill myself. We've been sat there for an hour before my phone rings.

"Hello?" I ask, holding the phone to my ear. Austin lets go of my hand and rushes up the steps.

"Ally. How are you?" my mom asks. I knew she wouldn't be able to resist the temptation to call me and check in to make sure things were okay.

"I'm good"

"Where are you"

"I told you, I'm out with Austin" I say before looking over to him. He was leaning over the banisters of the cabin, standing on them and spreading his arms out like wings. It reminded me of that cheesy scene in Titanic where that poor dude is holding the rich snobby girl over the railings. If it were me, I would have pushed her off. But still, the sight of Austin doing it made me laugh.

"Are you having fun?"

"Yes" I say, trying to stop laughing as he runs down the cabin to me. Heavily he sits down next to me, his lips attacking my neck with various kisses.

"Okay. Me and your father are back home since I wasn't feeling to well. I want you home in an hour"

"okay" I say before hanging up.

"Who was that?" he asks, his lips still on my neck.

"My mom" I reply before his lips move to mine. This wasn't like all our previous kisses. This once was fast and desperate. His lips work hard on mine, it was a type of kiss I had never thought was real, I'd only seen it in cheesy movies, never thinking I'd actually experience it. His hand holds my head, roughly running through my hair. We work in sync together for what feels like ages. His hands start to run up and down my waist, holding me tightly as if I were about to disappear. I think about what my mom said earlier. I think about what I thought. And I decide to take the chance. I slide my hand up his leg, close to his crotch.

"I want to" I whisper against his lips.

"No" he says back. His forehead against my head as he shakes his head. "Ally we cant. Not now"

"Oh" I sigh, pulling my head away. I didn't want to look at him since my face was going red. I felt embarrassed that I even attempted to do anything. I knew it was risky, I knew he probably wouldn't want to sleep with me, it was just me being stupid. I had fallen into that stupid trap given to teenagers, that loosing your virginity was something so important.

"I want to. I want to be with you so badly. And I've never felt like that with anyone. But I cant. Not now"

"Um. I should be going" I say, standing up about to walk away, but he grabs my hand and pulls me back.

"No. Stay. Please stay" he begs with sad eyes. I sit back down next to him and he wraps his arms around me.

"I like it here. I used to come here a lot. Sneak out of school. I'd sit here and watch the world go by. And I'd think, screw it. Screw all of it. You don't need high school, its just a little blip in your time line. So many people do well as high school drop outs, they turn out well, why cant I be like that? You don't need high school, its just another place where judgmental ass holes can feed off low self esteem. But when I'd sit here I'd realise there's a whole world out there, high school doesn't really mean anything when you've got this ahead of you" he says, pointing out to the ocean. I smile as I cuddle against his chest, glad that I could feel close to someone, worried for feeling so exposed.

"Look who it is" shouts a voice.

"Finally decided to show your face Austin" says another. I look up to see a group off people walking towards us.

**Thanks for reading. Please review, it helps to know your opinion. (P.S, that's not my real opinion of titanic.)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Home Is Where You Are**

**Chapter 8 - Remembrance **

"Finally had the courage to come out of hiding?" says a girls voice. There were five of them, all dressed in what seemed to be costumes of typical high school kids. One blonde haired girl dressed as a cheerleader, the colours looked familiar, they were the colours of my new school, the other dressed as a goth girl, black hair and long black clothes, even black make up to match. The three guys were dressed differently too, one was a jock, typical pretty boy, big muscles and short hair, one with glasses and shirt buttoned up to the top, I presumed he dressed as a nerd, and the other was dressed in sort of grunge clothes, kind of like Austin's, looking very old fashioned, 90's style. As they walk closer I realise that their outfits weren't just typical high school kids, they were all covered in fake blood, make up making them look like they'd been shot or something. I noticed their clothes were covered in the stuff, it looked very realistic. For a second I was actually impressed at how much effort they had gone to too dress up.

"Did mommy let you out of the house" says the grunge guy.

"There's a lot of beach guys. Cant you go somewhere else" Austin asks. I could tell through his words that he felt uncomfortable. Did he know these guys?

"No. We came here to see you Austin" says the goth girl.

"But your not out to see us. Your on a date" says the cheerleader.

"That's not fair. How come he gets a girlfriend. I don't have a girlfriend" says the jock. "I haven't even had sex in, what? 20 years now"

"What are you guys supposed to be? The dead breakfast club?" I ask annoyed as I stand up. Austin stands up after me and holds my shoulders, holding me back, he takes a step forwards so he is in front of me, like he was protecting me. I didn't need protecting, they were just a group of high school bullies, I had dealt with this sort of group before.

"Don't protect her you ass. She deserves everything she gets, along with you"

"What are they talking about?" I ask Austin but he doesn't say anything. He just gives a deadly glare to the group. He definitely knew them, and their had clearly been a lot of drama between them, that was clear.

"How does he get a date anyway? Who'd want to date him after everything" comments the goth girl who walked closer towards us. Its then that I noticed the detail in her make up. Her shirt had a couple of holes in with fake blood around it, it looked fresh too. Her face was covered in it as well, it was rolling down her cheeks, dripping off her chin onto her clothes and onto the sand. All of the group stood in a puddle of their fake blood. They were impressive costumes, I had to admit. But by now I wanted to get away from them. They were pissing me off and clearly annoying Austin. I hated the face that they had to ruin what I would have called mostly a perfect night. But then I remember that the world is full of shit and I can never really have one perfect night. The universe doesn't want me too.

"Come on Ally" Austin says, grabbing my arm and starting to lead me away from the group. "it's a stupid beach anyway. Someone needs to pick up the trash" he shouts loud enough for them to hear as we walk off the beach. I turn to see them all stood there, looking at us, plotting their next move.

Austin is silent the whole walk home. He doesn't say anything despite how many times I ask him questions. "Who were those people? What were they talking about? What are they saying you did?" but there's never an answer. Its an awkward and nerve-racking walk back to my house. We reach the front door and I unlock it, letting myself in. I thought he was going to say goodbye but he walks in the house after me, rushing up the stairs.

"Ally" my dad calls from the living room.

"Hi" I say before approaching the stairs to follow Austin.

"Did you have fun with Austin?"

"Yeah, thanks. Um. How was yours and moms date?"

"It was okay. We had to come back early because she felt ill."

"Oh. Um. I'm going to bed"

"Sure. Are you okay" he asks when I had taken my first step on the stairs.

"I'm fine. Just tired"

"Okay. Go get some sleep. I promised your mom I would wait up until you got back, but I'm going to bed now. Night sweetie" he says stepping towards me and kissing my forehead before walking up the stairs. I walk up a few seconds later.

The thing I liked about living in such a big house was that my bedroom was down the hall from my parents. I was able to talk normally without them hearing anything. It was only when you shouted they would hear me but I wasn't planning on shouting tonight.

"Austin. You need to give me some answers" I say as I walk into my room and shut the door behind me. He had turned on a couple of the lamps in the room and sat down on the bed, flipping through a book I had placed on my nightstand earlier. It was like nothing had happened at all, he just cared about the book he was flipping through.

"Who were they?" I ask as I sit down on the bed next to him. I look over to him, his eyes still concentrated on the book but I could see tears forming in his eyes.

"I don't know" he says, closing the book and looking over to me.

"Well, they knew you"

"They were just high school ass holes trying to feed off bullying others. I thought… I thought you'd understand that" he says looking sadly at his hands which play and fiddle with the blanket on my bed. I sigh, feeling sorry for him as I move closer to him, lifting his arm and crawling under, wrapping my arms around his waist and holding him tightly as he holds me back.

"I've read this before" he says referring to the book in front of him, wiping the tears from his eyes as he speaks.

"What did you think of it?" it was some old Victorian book about old folk tales. My parents had bought me it a couple of years when I was interested in the era, they wanted me to study it move, give me something to do. I had found it for the first time in years just yesterday and decided to give it another read.

"It was good. A bit draining after the 20th story, but I liked it. I think my favourite…" his words are interrupted by something lightly banging against my window. I climb out of Austin's arms before walking towards the windows. Pulling the curtain back I see a group of figures stood below, suddenly the outside light switches on and I see it's the same group of teenagers we saw on the beach.

"They followed us home!" I say shocked, thinking that this wasn't how the night was supposed to go. But I knew the best thing I could do now was to get rid of them.  
>"Ally just leave them" Austin calls after me as I grab a pair of scissors from my table and walk out the door.<p>

"They cant just wait outside my house all night" I reply as I walk out of my bedroom, closing the door behind me.

"Aw, has he really sent his little girlfriend out to deal with this for him" says the goth girl.

"This is private property. You need to leave. Now"

"Or what? Your going to stab me?" the jock says, referring to the scissors in my hand. "Honey, you cant hurt me"

"Don't you think we've been hurt enough?" says the grunge guy, pushing his long black hair out of his face as he walks up to me and shows me a fake wound in his head. The make up was very realistic, scarily so.

"You guys need to get your stupid, made up faces, and leave"

"Made up faces" says the cheerleader. "You think this is fake?"

"She's just trying to protect her boyfriend" rolls the eyes of the goth girl who was now sat on the brick wall where I would often sit when sneaking a cigarette at home. "She'd do anything for him. Including giving him her virginity. Tonight was the night wasn't it?" she smirks, as if she knew I was cautious on the subject, knowing he had rejected me. "We saw you two getting very intimate on the beach" she adds, trying to make me more conscious.

"Your sick you know" adds the cheerleader. "How can anyone love him after everything. What would your parents think?"

"Its none of their business and its none of yours. So why don't you go home to your parents and leave us alone" I whisper loudly, wanting to shout but knowing it would wake my parents up.

"My parents split up after what happened to me. Moved town, left no forwarding address so I'm not sorry that I'm depriving you of one night away from lover boy"

"I know parents can be shitty. But that's not my fault, I cant take that away for you so why don't you leave us alone"

"Can you take this away?" the jock says, interrupting the conversation between me and the cheerleader. He was pointing to the side of his head where there was a shotgun entrance wound. "Can you bring back my scholarship?"

"What about me man?" says the grunge guy. "I was honour roll. I could have changed the world!"

"Huhs psft" says the guy dressed as a nerd but he couldn't get his words right. His mouth was mauled and mangled so you could barely see a mouth at all. I was unsure where his mouth stopped and his chin started, when he tried to speak, blood just feel from the gaping hole in his face.

"Its okay" says the cheerleader, rubbing his back and sitting down next to him. "Do you see how sick you are? For falling for him after what he did to us?"

"What did he do to you?! I shout, glad that a light didn't turn on in my parents room so I didn't wake them up.

"She doesn't know?!" the jock laughs, making the rest of the group laugh. "Haven't you heard of us? We're kind of famous"

"So what? Your popular kids. I don't pay attention to people like you. I just moved here anyway"

"Pick up a year book bitch."

"I don't know what's going on. What Austin supposedly did to you. But it has nothing to do with me. So just leave"

"No. your involved now. Your just as bad as him!" shouts the grunge guy.

"Leave her alone!" Austin shouts when he appears in the doorway.

"Finally grown a pair of balls eh?!"

"Leave her alone. Your problems with me. Not her" he says, gently taking my arm and bringing me towards him so he was stood in front of me, protecting me.

"No, they want to hurt you"

"I'll be fine"

"Listen to your girlfriend Austin. We want payback. We want to find out why"

"You want to talk to me? Well lets see how fast you can run!" he shouts before launching himself out of the door and down the drive onto the street. Running as far and as fast as possible. The group run after him, leaving me alone, I try for a second to run after them all but I cant keep up. I end up walking back home and grabbing my phone, dialling 911.

"Emergency services" says a tried but friendly male voice. "What service do you need"

"Police. I think my boyfriends in trouble, there's a bunch of people chasing him, I think their going to hurt him"

**Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed. If we get to around 23 reviews then I'll update as soon as possible. Sorry I haven't been on over the past few days, I've had a lot of exams and then I had my birthday so I wanted to celebrate that with some family. **

**I was up until 1am writing this so...  
>Please review.<strong>


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